The Kemble Occasional No. 5, published in San Francisco in September 1968 and devoted to “Serials in Edward C. Kemble Collections,” an extensive bibliography documenting historical periodicals devoted to printing, typography, publishing, lithography, book collecting and the graphic arts.
This particular issue has an important California fine-press connection. The colophon states that only 100 copies were printed for the ninth joint meeting of the Zamorano Club of Los Angeles and the Roxburghe Club of San Francisco, held September 21–22, 1968. The keepsake was presented by Carroll T. Harris and George L. Harding of the Zamorano Club and Lester Lloyd and Roger Levenson of the Roxburghe Club.
The issue was composed in Monotype Times New Roman by Mackenzie & Harris of San Francisco and printed on Curtis Colophon Text by Tamalpais Press of Berkeley, placing it firmly within the Northern California fine-printing and bibliophile tradition.
The Edward C. Kemble Collections on American Printing & Publishing were maintained by the California Historical Society in San Francisco. Kemble was an important figure in the preservation of American printing history, and the collections assembled extensive source material documenting printers, publishers, newspapers, typography and the graphic arts.
George L. Harding, identified here as Honorary Curator, explains that the bibliography was prepared to provide a more useful record of periodicals held in the collection. Assistant Curator Annette Windele undertook the detailed work of compiling the list.
The six-page bibliography is particularly rich in specialized printing history. Hundreds of publications are identified, frequently with dates, volume information and notes concerning incomplete holdings. Among the titles represented are American Printer and Lithographer, American Printers’ Specimen Exchange, Ars Typographica, Book Club of California Quarterly News Letter, The Colophon, The Fleuron, Inland Printer, Linotype News, Monotype Recorder, Pacific Printer and Publisher, Printing Art, Printing Magazine and the Offset Printer, Typographica, Typographical Journal and numerous regional and international printing-trade publications.
The final page also contains a separate “List of Serials Currently Received By Kemble Collections,” providing a snapshot of the active printing, publishing, bibliography and book-collecting periodicals reaching the collection in 1968.
The Zamorano Club and Roxburghe Club association significantly enhances the historical interest of this issue. Both organizations became important centers of California bibliophilic culture, bringing together collectors, printers, librarians, publishers and scholars interested in fine books and printing history. Their joint-meeting keepsakes form a distinctive area of California private-press collecting.
The Mackenzie & Harris connection is equally significant. The San Francisco firm became one of the West Coast’s notable type composition houses and was closely associated with the Bay Area’s fine-printing community. Tamalpais Press provides another direct connection to the region’s private-press tradition.
Condition is very good for its age, with light toning and minor handling and edge wear visible. Printing remains crisp and highly legible throughout.
Why collect it: This is a particularly specialized piece of California printing history combining the Edward C. Kemble Collections, California Historical Society, Zamorano Club, Roxburghe Club, Mackenzie & Harris and Tamalpais Press in a single publication. The stated limitation of 100 copies adds considerably to its bibliographic interest. It also serves as a useful primary reference for collectors researching historic printing journals, typefounding publications, printer specimen material and American graphic-arts periodicals.
Keywords: Kemble Occasional, Edward C Kemble, Kemble Collections, 1968 printing, California Historical Society, Zamorano Club, Roxburghe Club, San Francisco printing, Los Angeles bibliophiles, Mackenzie Harris, Tamalpais Press, Monotype, Times New Roman, letterpress, typography, typefounding, printing history, fine press, private press, bibliophile, bibliography, graphic arts, printer ephemera, printing trade journals, Book Club of California, California books, book collecting, publishing history.